Murder Mystery Review

Onscreen chemistry can sometimes be the determining factor in the enjoyment level of a movie and that is certainly the case in Netflix’s Murder Mystery which finds Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston as a delightfully fun onscreen pair.Summary: Murder Mystery follows a New York cop and his wife going on a European vacation to liven up their 15-year-old marriage who find themselves framed for murder. Murder Mystery is far from a perfect mystery film but what makes it work is the stellar performances from Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston and the film’s willingness to fully embrace the absurdity of the situation the characters find themselves in.
 
Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston are long-standing standouts in Hollywood and in Murder Mystery they prove they are still capable of delivering entertainment in high gear. One of the most compelling parts of their performances is their transformative acting which makes you believe in the characters you are watching and at the same time doesn’t make you think about the other numerous characters the actors have played in the past. The natural chemistry between the two leads also really works because it keeps the characters grounded in preventing Sandler’s character from going to over the top and cartoonist at times and opening up Aniston’s character to a more playful side which prevents her very straight-faced character from becoming too mundane in the somewhat parody esque tone of the movie.
 
Murder Mystery pulls off some of the mystery story elements off really well because this picture could have easily just stuck to telling a wild over the top comedic tale when instead it took care to transport the unique quirky lead characters into a lavish and very dramatically cinematic landscape which begins with the yacht they are invited on and evolves from there and have the characters contrast the mystery drama to hilarious effect. As the mystery progresses the story puts the characters through various murder mystery cliches but against engaging backdrops with strong character actors and the writing in the script brings forth a tongue in cheek flavor that emphasizes the fish out of water/parody theme the comedy-mystery is going for.  Great use of big-budget action, makes it a standout for Netflix Since this is a Netflix film one might think that the action would be restrained in this movie and limited but instead it pulls off some really exciting sequences within the scope of the story. A couple of highlights include a zany shootout and a mustache-themed Ferrari chase which may stretch the lines of believability but are totally in line with the wacky tone.
 
The evolution of the relationship problems between Sandler and Aniston is a factor in this movie but it’s not that deep or thematically relevant as it hits the necessary beats but doesn't do anything to make a statement or flesh out the world of their marriage. There could have been various possibilities for explaining why the long-standing couple have never had kids or why they have been together so long in the first place and really fleshed out the marriage more and made it feel more real and rich from a storytelling perspective but instead the movie focuses on delivering absurd comedy in an unrealistic situation that is presented with numerous plot holes which are to be ignored for the sake of entertainment. 
Conclusion: Murder Mystery is a thrilling often funny picture that proves Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston still can channel incredible energy into a story and imbue it with great fun. 
Score: C +

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One Review

Image
Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One is a timely tale about the dangers of AI and also a deeply personal story bringing Ethan Hunt's origins at the IMF full circle. This marks the third entry in the franchise that Christopher McQuarrie has both written and directed as he manages to bring to the screen an intensely cinematic film with both high physical and emotional stakes.  The story is centered around an ominous artificial intelligence known as "The Entity" which has become sentient and proceeded to infiltrate its way into the computer systems of prominent nations across the world. Thus when Ethan is recruited by Kittridge (his old nemesis from MI: 1 played by Henry Czerny) to retrieve the other part of a key that governments across the world are racing to obtain in order to gain control of the AI, Ethan decides to go rogue against his government to destroy the AI thinking that that much power is too much for anyone to have. Ethan's
Read more

Sound of Freedom Review

Image
"The most powerful person in this world is the storyteller", Jim Caviezel declares in the special post-credits message to the audience at the end of this film. The story he's talking about is that of the millions of children who are put into slavery in today's 21st century society. Directed by Alejandro Gómez Monteverde, Sound of Freedom is based on a true story and follows Tim Ballard (Jim Caviezel) who saves a boy from ruthless child traffickers and then learning the boy's sister is still captive decides to embark on a dangerous mission to save her. This film was made 5 years ago but faced every road block you can think of on it's way to the theatres due to the studios being afraid to release it until Angel Studios stepped in as the distributor. And now that it's finally out there in the world this film sends a resounding and powerful message that God's Children Are Not For Sale. It also operates on another level working as a film itself
Read more

Barbenheimer Double Feature Review

Image
I confess I subjected myself to the Barbenheimer social experiment and survived to tell the tale. These are two radically different movies to be sure, but both have one thing in common: they are well told. Barbie is directed by Greta Gerwig and follows Margot Robbie as the stereotypical Barbie who suffers an existential crisis that leads her to question her world and her existence. The result is a movie that is paradoxical in tone as it is as silly and irreverent as it is emotionally nuanced. Oppenheimer is directed by Christoper Nolan and follows Cillian Murphy as Robert J. Oppenheimer in his quest to develop the Atomic Bomb during World War Two. For a three-hour drama that isn’t an action film it moves surprisingly fast and is charged with crackling dialogue, breathtaking cinematography, and psychologically wrenching moments.  Returning to Barbieland, Margot Robbie excels as this seemingly one-note character who underneath has all kinds of depth. She is paired with her Ken (Ryan Go
Read more